Issue Type: Farm Animals

BOGOTA, Colombia—Crepes & Waffles, Colombia’s leading restaurant company, with approximately 165 locations, announced its commitment to source exclusively cage-free eggs (shell and processed) by 2025. This policy follows discussions with Humane Society International and other animal protection organizations.

In Colombia, approximately 75 percent of egg-laying hens are confined in wire battery cages, so small the birds can barely move or stretch their wings. Cage-free systems generally offer higher animal welfare compared to caged systems. Hens housed in cage-free settings are able to walk, stretch their wings and lay their eggs in nests, in addition to performing other important natural behaviors that are denied to animals confined for their whole lives in cages.

Elissa Lane, deputy director of HSI Farm Animals, stated: “We congratulate Crepes & Waffles for improving animal welfare in its supply chain by joining the global cage-free egg movement. By pledging to use only cage-free eggs, Crepes & Waffles is helping millions of hens in Colombia who will be spared a life of suffering in cruel cages. We look forward to continuing to work with Crepes & Waffles during the transition period, and invite other Colombian companies to join this quickly growing corporate social responsibility movement.”

More than 30 companies have joined this cage-free egg initiative in Colombia and Latin America, including Pan Pa’ Ya, Hoteles Estelar, Grupo Bimbo, Alsea, Arcos Dorados, Burger King, Compass Group, Accor Hotels, Sodexo, Kraft Heinz, International Meal Company and Nestlé.

J. Macêdo, a Brazilian company that owns the pasta brands Petybon and Brandini, has committed to sourcing exclusively cage-free eggs throughout its supply chain by 2025. This policy follows discussions with Humane Society International and other animal protection organizations. The company’s announcement follows the recent commitment by Pastifício Primo, another pasta company, in partnership with HSI, to buy only cage-free eggs by 2022.

Fernanda Vieira, corporate policy and program manager for HSI Farm Animals in Brazil, stated: “We are thrilled with J. Macêdo’s cage-free eggs policy, which will improve animal welfare in its supply chain. It is a clear sign that the future of egg production in Brazil is cage-free and we are excited to work with other companies on similar policies.”

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Egg-laying hens are typically confined for their whole lives in wire battery cages, so small that the hens cannot even fully stretch their wings. Both common sense and science agree that virtually immobilizing animals for their entire lives causes mental distress and significant physical pain.

Media contact: Raúl Arce-Contreras, rcontreras@humanesociety.org

Kraft Heinz, one of the world’s largest food makers, has committed to sourcing exclusively cage-free eggs in its entire global supply chain by 2025. This follows on previous commitments to eliminate the use of cages from their regional egg supply chains in North America, Europe and Latin America.

Chetana Mirle, senior director of farm animals for Humane Society International, said: “We applaud Kraft Heinz for extending their cage-free egg policy commitment to Asia and Africa. By ensuring that their global egg supply chains are 100 percent cage-free by 2025, Kraft Heinz’ latest commitment provides further incentive for egg producers throughout the world to transition to cage-free housing systems that offer higher welfare standards for hens over caged systems.” 

Around the world, the majority of egg-laying hens are confined in wire battery cages. The cages are so small that the hens can’t move freely and are unable to stretch their wings. Each battery cage confines five to 10 egg-laying hens and each animal has less space than a letter-sized piece of paper on which to spend her whole life. Hens confined in battery cages are unable to express important natural behaviors including nesting, dustbathing, and perching. Cage-free systems generally offer hens higher levels of animal welfare than battery cage systems.

Kraft Heinz joins other multinational companies that have committed to global cage-free egg procurement policies including Compass Group, Sodexo and General Mills.

Media contact: Raul Arce-Contreras, rcontreras@humanesociety.org

Humane Society International hosted Brazil’s first corporate animal welfare roundtable, bringing together food industry leaders to discuss the cage-free egg movement in the country. In recent years, egg-laying hen welfare has become a priority corporate social responsibility issue for the food industry, with dozens of food companies committing to sourcing exclusively cage-free eggs.

The roundtable, which took place at the Mercure hotel in São Paulo, included speakers from Arcos Dorados, the company that operates all McDonald’s restaurants in Brazil and 19 other countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, and Bunge, one of Brazil’s largest food and agribusiness companies. They spoke about their corporate commitments and actions to achieve a transition to a 100 percent cage-free egg supply chains by 2025. Other speakers included representatives from FAI do Brasil, who discussed technical information regarding cage-free egg production systems, and from Certified Humane, who shared information on animal welfare certification in Brazil. Representatives from Brazilian companies that have already committed to or are looking into cage-free supply chains attended the roundtable.

Leonardo Lima, director of sustainable development for Arcos Dorados, said: “Arcos Dorados has a strong commitment to animal welfare in all its procurement and follows advances in farm animal production models. That is why we are sourcing exclusively cage-free eggs by 2025, committed to providing our clients with higher quality products. Our partnership with Humane Society International will help ensure that our animal welfare policies are robust and applicable to our suppliers.”

Meire de Fatima de Ferreira, sustainability manager for Bunge in Brazil, stated: “At Bunge we take corporate social responsibility and responsible consumption seriously, which includes animal welfare in our supply chain. We’re committed to only sourcing cage-free eggs by 2025, and will work with Humane Society International and our peers to make this happen.”

Fernanda Vieira, corporate policy and program manager for HSI Farm Animals in Brazil, stated: “We’re thrilled to host Brazil’s first corporate animal welfare roundtable and bring together forward-thinking companies that are committed to higher animal welfare standards in their supply chains. Humane Society International’s mission is to not only call for the improved treatment of animals, but to support companies as they implement animal welfare policies, and encourage collaboration among various stakeholders. We want to help ensure that companies have all of the tools and resources they need to make a cage-free future for laying hens a reality.”

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In Brazil and around the world, egg-laying hens spend their entire lives confined in wire battery cages, so small that they cannot even fully spread their wings. Science confirms what common sense tells us: the lack of space and restriction of movement is detrimental to the physical health of these animals and causes enormous frustration and suffering. However, advocates for better animal welfare are making enormous progress in Brazil. Dozens of the largest food corporations, including McDonald’s, Bunge, Cargill, Nestlé, BFFC, and GRSA, have committed to using exclusively cage-free eggs in their supply chains in Brazil, by 2025 or earlier.

Gastronomía y Negocios, a Chilean restaurant company that operates the popular chains Doggis, Juan Maestro, and Mamut, has committed to sourcing exclusively cage-free eggs and crate-free pork in its entire supply chain in Chile by 2025.  The company operates over 250 locations in the country.

In Chile, the majority of egg-laying hens are confined in battery cages, small, wire enclosures that prevent the animals from moving freely or stretching their wings. Each battery cage confines five to 10 egg-laying hens and each animal has less space than a letter-sized piece of paper on which to spend her whole life. Hens confined in battery cages are unable to express important natural behaviors, including nesting, dustbathing, and perching. These types of enclosures are common in Chilean egg farms.

Breeding sows are also frequently confined for virtually their whole lives, or up to four years, in individual gestation crates so small that the animals cannot turn around or take more than a couple of steps forward or backward.

Cage and crate-free systems generally offer hens and pigs higher levels of animal welfare than caged systems.

Ignacia Uribe, corporate policy and program manager for HSI Farm Animals in Chile, stated: “We’re proud to have discussed these important animal welfare improvements with Gastronomía y Negocios and applaud the company for its commitment to eliminate pork from gestation crates and eggs from battery cages from its supply chain. By renouncing battery cages and gestation crates, companies around the world are meeting the growing demand for higher welfare products and generating change in the egg and pork industries.”

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Gastronomía y Negocios joins other companies that have committed to making similar animal welfare improvements in Chile, including Melting Cook, Kraft Heinz, Unilever, Grupo Bimbo, Compass Group, Sodexo, Subway, McDonald’s, Burger King and Alsea.

Media contact: Raúl Arce-Contreras, rcontreras@humanesociety.org

Leading egg producers from Singapore and the Tien Giang Province of Vietnam travelled to Europe to learn about cage-free egg production at Heal Eggs Ltd, an innovative egg farm in Shrewsbury, United Kingdom. Ma Chin Chew of N&N Agriculture in Singapore joined Le Van Hoa, who has more than 300,000 hens on his farm, in learning about new types of cage-free housing systems, techniques and procedures for managing hens in cage-free environments, and the benefits of such systems for hen welfare.

Heal Eggs Ltd has been awarded the RSPCA Assured certification, which prohibits the use of cages and provides guidelines for hen health, diet, environment and care. RSPCA operates this ethical food label dedicated to farm animal welfare.

Humane Society International, a global animal protection organization, sponsored Mr. Ma’s and Mr. Hoa’s trip. As part of HSI’s Farm Animal campaign, the organization helps the food industry adopt higher standards for the care of animals on farms, including by connecting companies like N&N Agriculture and farmers like Mr. Hoa with the technical training and resources they need to transition to cage-free egg production. Earlier this year, Mr. Hoa joined a roundtable organized by HSI that brought together representatives from major global food service and hospitality companies with Vietnamese farmers and government officials to discuss the growing demand in Vietnam for higher animal welfare products.

Around the world, including in Vietnam, the majority of egg-laying hens spend nearly their entire lives confined in barren battery cages so small, the birds cannot freely spread their wings let alone express other important natural behaviors like perching, dustbathing and laying their eggs in nests. However, growing consumer concerns about the treatment of animals raised for food make it increasingly clear that the future of egg production is cage-free. Dozens of countries have national or local restrictions on the use of battery cages, and a growing number of multinational companies have pledged to eliminate eggs from caged hens from their supply chains globally, including in Asia, by 2025.

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Dawn Neo, corporate outreach manager for HSI Farm Animals in Asia, said: “The cage-free movement has already begun to take root in Asia. We look forward to helping food companies and egg producers meet consumer expectations for eggs produced with higher standards for animal welfare.”

Trang Dang, HSI Vietnam campaign manager for farm animals, said: “We are happy to see Vietnamese farmers joining the global cage-free movement. We look forward to helping more farmers and food companies improve animal welfare on their farms and in their supply chains for eggs and meat.”

Mr. Hoa said: “I appreciated the opportunity to learn about cage-free housing from Heal Eggs Ltd. In Vietnam there is an increasing level of consumer interest in animal welfare, and we want to be among the first to capture the market for cage-free eggs.”

Ma Chin Chew said:  “Asian consumers are increasingly concerned about the treatment of animals used for meat and eggs. We are thankful to Heal Eggs for sharing their expertise on cage-free housing with us.”

RSPCA senior scientific officer Mia Fernyhough said: “We are delighted to support the HSI with this initiative, and that this meeting was a success. It’s fantastic that Mr Hoa is keen to be among the first to capture the market for cage-free eggs in Vietnam and we hope that his visit to an RSPCA Assured farm proved informative and insightful for his future ventures with his own business.

“RSPCA welfare standards are designed to ensure that all animals reared according to the requirements have everything they need for a better quality of life, whether they are kept on large or small farms, or in indoor or outdoor production systems. With well managed integrated rearing and production systems, operating to RSPCA welfare standards, Heal Eggs Ltd is the perfect showcase to demonstrate the benefits of higher welfare cage-free egg production.”

RSPCA Head of international, Paul Littlefair: “In recent years we have seen a surge in interest particularly from East Asia in the RSPCA Assured scheme, and members have welcomed on their farms officials, scientists and producers from Korea, Japan, Taiwan and China, so we are especially pleased that Heal Eggs Ltd are now able to show best practice to HSI’s partners in Vietnam.”

Tony Heal, owner of Heal Eggs Ltd said: “At Heal Eggs Ltd, we continue to invest in the latest technology and equipment to enhance the management and welfare of our birds. We are delighted to have the opportunity to share our knowledge and experience with other producers wishing to make the switch to higher welfare free-range egg production.”

SÃO PAULO—Pastifício Primo, an important pasta company in Brazil, has announced it has joined with HSI to switch to a 100% cage-free egg supply chain by 2022.

In Brazil, egg-laying hens are typically confined for their whole lives in wire battery cages, so small that the hens cannot even fully stretch their wings. Both common sense and science agree that virtually immobilizing animals for their entire lives causes mental distress and significant physical pain.

The use of conventional battery cages for laying hens is banned or being phased out under laws or regulations throughout the EU, in six U.S. states and in Canada, New Zealand and Bhutan. Officials in the majority of states in India, the world’s third largest egg producer, have declared that the use of battery cages violates the country’s animal welfare legislation, and India is debating a national ban.

Pastifício Primo joins other food corporations that have committed to switching to exclusively cage-free eggs in Brazil and throughout Latin America, including Unilever, which has committed to a global cage-free egg supply chain by 2020, and Nestlé, the largest food company in the world, by 2025. After working with HSI, Burger King and Arcos Dorados, which operates McDonald’s in Brazil and 19 other countries in the region, committed to switching to 100 percent cage-free eggs, as did other restaurant operators, accounting for thousands of restaurants in Brazil and Latin America.

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In Brazil, Compass Group (GRSA) and Sodexo have previously announced their commitment to a global cage-free policy in partnership with HSI. Alsea, the largest restaurant operator in Latin America and Spain, and Grupo Bimbo, the world’s largest bakery company, announced their cage-free egg policies after several years of talks with HSI specialists. Corporations like JBS, BRF, Sapore, Casa do Pão de Queijo, International Meal Company (IMC), Grupo Trigo, Brazil Fast Food Corporation (BFFC), Subway, Giraffas, Habib’s, Grupo Halipar, Cargill, Bunge, Hemmer, Barilla, Intercontinental Hotels Group, AccorHotels, Marriott International and Hilton Worldwide have also pledged to go cage-free in Brazil.

Following its 2014 commitment to switch to a 100 percent cage-free global egg supply chain, Nestlé, the world’s largest food company, announced that it will complete this transition in Europe by 2020 and in Latin America, Oceania, Middle East, and Africa by 2025. The company had previously committed to completing its transition to a cage-free supply chain in the U.S. by 2020, and in Canada by 2025. 

According to Nestlé, all eggs it sources must be from hens raised without the use of cages, helping accelerate the egg industry’s move away from the caged confinement of laying hens.

Elissa Lane, deputy director of Humane Society International Farm Animals, stated: “Nestlé announcement that it will transition to a cage-free egg supply chain in Latin America, Oceania, the Middle East and Africa by 2025 is an important benchmark in the global move towards cage-free eggs. While the company also signaled that Asia would be included in this move ‘if conditions allow,’ we urge the company to commit to and meet the 2025 deadline for its supply chain in that region, as well. Humane Society International is proud to support Nestle on the implementation of this policy around the globe. With the world’s largest food companies improving animal welfare in their supply chains by eliminating eggs from hens confined in battery cages, Nestlé’s policy sends another clear message to the egg industry that the future of egg production is cage-free.”

Ruud Tombrock, executive director of HSI/Europe, stated: “We applaud Nestlé’s leadership in animal welfare and look forward to supporting the implementation of their animal welfare policies around the world. The company’s commitment to end their procurement of caged eggs throughout Europe by 2020 is further proof that the future of egg production is cage-free.”

Worldwide, the majority of egg-laying hens are confined in wire battery cages. The cages are so small that the hens can barely move or stretch their wings. Each battery cage confines five to 10 egg-laying hens and each animal has less space than an A4 sized piece of paper on which to spend her whole life.

While barren battery cages to house egg laying hens are banned in the European Union, enriched or furnished cages remain common. Similar to conventional battery cages, furnished cages provide an unacceptably limited amount of space per bird. They prevent many important activities, including running, jumping, flying and wing flapping. They also constrain important natural behaviours such as perching, dustbathing and nesting. In various non-EU countries in Europe, hens are regularly confined in barren battery cages.  

Media contact: Raúl Arce-Contreras, rcontreras@humanesociety.org

The restaurant group Melting Cook announced it is joining with Humane Society International to improve animal welfare in its supply chain, switching to a 100 percent cage-free egg supply chain, becoming the first Chilean company to join this global movement. Melting Cook will use exclusively cage-free shell eggs starting December 1st, and will conclude the transition for all products, including mayonnaise, by 2020.

Melting Cook is a leading gastronomy group in Chile that owns the restaurants Uncle Fletch, La Misión, La Fabbrica, KrossBar, Bocanáriz, Castillo Forestal and Chipe Libre. It will soon open new projects. The group will source exclusively cage-free eggs from Ecoterra, a Chilean egg producer internationally certified in animal welfare by Certified Humane. HSI supports companies like Melting Cook throughout the world in the implementation of their animal welfare policies including by providing technical resources and trainings on cage-free egg production.

Jerome Reynes, CEO of Melting Cook, stated: “Animal welfare is a priority CSR [corporate social responsibility] issue globally, and we’re proud to join and lead this important initiative in Chile. Confining egg-laying hens in battery cages isn’t a sustainable practice and switching to a cage-free egg supply chain reflects our values as a socially responsible company. We’re already begun the transition to cage-free eggs, and we’re happy to work with Humane Society International and Ecoterra to continue improving animal welfare in our supply chain.”

Ignacia Uribe, corporate policy and program manager for HSI Farm Animals, stated: “We congratulate Melting Cook for joining the global cage-free movement and for its leadership in this issue in Chile. We hope other Chilean food companies will follow this example and also decide to eliminate using eggs from controversial battery cages. We look forward to continuing to work with Melting Cook on this and other animal welfare issues.”

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In Chile, the majority of egg-laying hens are confined in wire battery cages, so small they can’t stretch their wings. Each battery cage confines five to 10 egg-laying hens and each animal has less space than a letter-sized piece of paper on which to spend her whole life. Hens confined in battery cages are unable to express important natural behaviors, including nesting, dustbathing and perching. Cage-free systems generally offer hens higher levels of animal welfare than battery cage systems.

Media contact: Raúl Arce-Contreras, 301-721-6440, rcontreras@humanesociety.org